Turn'd recreant to God, ingrate and false,
And fo of all true good himself despoil'd,
Yet, facrilegious, to himself would take
That which to God alone of right belongs;
Yet fo much bounty is in God, fuch grace,
That who advance his glory, not their own,
Them he himself to glory will advance.
So fpake the Son of God; and here again 145 Satan had not to answer, but ftood ftruck With guilt of his own fin, for he himself Infatiable of glory had loft all, Yer of another Flea bethought him foon.
Of glory as thou wilt, faid he, so deem,
Worth or not worth their seeking, let it pass:
But to a Kingdom thou art born, ordain'd
To fit upon thy Father David's Throne;
By Mother's fide thy Father, though thy right
Be now in pow'rful hands, that will not part rss
Easily from poffeffion won with arms;
Judea now and all the promis'd land,
Reduc'd a Province under Roman yoke,
Obeys Tiberius; nor is always rul'd
With temp'rate fway; oft have they violated 160
The Temple, oft the Law with foul affronts,
Abominations rather, as did once
Antiochus: and think'st thou to regain
Thy right by fitting ftill or thus retiring?
So did not Machabeus: he indeed
Retir'd unto the Defart, but with arms;
And o'er a mighty King fo oft prevail'd
That by ftrong hand his Family obtain'd,
Tho' Priefts, the Crown, and David's Throne ufurp'd, With Modin and her fuburbs once content.
If Kingdom move thee not, let move thee Zeal
And Duty; Zeal and Duty are not flows
But on Occafion's forelock watchful wait.
They themselves rather are occasion beft,
Zeal of thy Father's houfe, Duty to free
Thy Country from her Heathen fervitude;
So fhalt thou beft fulfil, beft verifie
The Prophets old, who fung thy endless reign,
The happier reign the fooner it begins,
Reign then; what canft thou better do the while? 180
To whom our Saviour answer thus return'd.
All things are beft fulfill'd in their due time,
And time there is for all things, Truth hath faid:
If of my reign prophetic Writ hath told,
That it fhall never end, fo when begin
The Father in his purpose hath decreed,
He in whofe hand all times and seasons roll.
What if he hath decreed that I fhall firft
Be try'd in humble state, and things adverfe,
By tribulations, injuries, infults,
Contempts, and fcorns, and fnares, and violence,
Suffering, abstaining, quietly expecting,
Without diftruft or doubt, that he may know
What I can fuffer, how obey? who best
Can fuffer, best can do; beft reign, who first
Well hath obey'd; just trial ere I merit
My exaltation without change or end,
But what concerns it thee when I begin
My everlasting Kingdom, why art thou
Solicitous, what moves thy inquifition?
Know'st thou not that my rifing is thy fall,
And my promotion will be thy destruction?
To whom the Tempter inly rack'd reply'd:
Let that come when it comes; all hope is loft
Of my reception into grace; what worse?
For where no hope is left, is left no fear;
If there be worse, the expectation more
Of worse torments me than the feeling can.
I would be at the worft; worst is my Port,
My harbour and my ultimate repose,
The end I would attain, my final good..
My error was my error, and my crime
My crime; whatever for it felf condemn'd,
And will alike be punish'd; whether thou
Reign or reign not; though to that gentle brow 215
Willingly I could flie, and hope thy reign,
From that placid aspect and meek regard,
Rather than aggravate my evil state,
Would stand between me and thy Father's ire,
(Whofe ire I dread more than the Fire of Hell,) 220 A shelter and a kind of shading cool
Interpofition, as a fummer's cloud.
If I then to the worst that can be hafte,
Why move thy feet fo flow to what is best,
Happiest both to thy felf and all the world,
That thou who worthieft art should't be their King
Perhaps thou lingreft in deep thoughts detain'd
Of th'enterprize fo hazardous and high;
No wonder, for though in thee be united
What of perfection can in man be found,
Or human nature can receive, confider,
Thy life hath yet been private, most part spent
At home, fcarce view'd the Gallilean Towns,
And once a year Jerusalem, few days
Short fojourn; and what thence could't thou observe?
The world thou haft not feen, much less her glory,
Empires, and Monarchs, and their radiant Courts,
Best school of beft experience, quickest in sight
In all things that to greatest Actions lead.
The wifeft, unexperienc'd, will be ever
Tim'rous and loth, with novice modefty,
(As he who feeking Affes found a Kingdom)
Irrefolute, unhardy, unadventrous:
But I will bring thee where thou foon halt quit
Thofe rudiments, and fee before thine eyes
The Monarchies of th'Earth, their pomp and state,
Sufficient introduction to inform
Thee, of thy felf fo apt, in regal Arts,
And regal Mysteries, that thou may'st know
How beft their oppofition to withstand.
With that (such pow'r was giv'n him then) hetook The Son of God up to a Mountain high. It was a Mountain at whofe verdant feet
A fpacious plain out-ftretch'd in circuit wide
Lay pleasant; from his fide two rivers flow'd,
Th' one winding, th' other ftraight, and left between
Fair Champain with lefs rivers intervein'd,
Then meeting join'd their Tribute to the Sea,
Fertil of corn the glebe, of oyl and wine, 259
With herds the pastures throng'd,with flocks the hills;
Huge Cities and high towr'd, that well might feem
The feats of mightieft Monarchs, and fo large.
The Profpect was, that here and there was room
For barren defart fountainless and dry.
To this high mountain top the Tempter brought 265
Our Saviour, and new train of words began.
Well have we fpeeded, and o'er hill and dale,
Foreft and field, and flood, Temples and Tow'rs
Cut shorter many a league; here thou behold'st
Affyria and her Empire's ancient bounds,
Araxes and the Caspian lake, thence on
As far as Indus East, Euphrates Weft,
And oft beyond; to South the Perfian Bay,
And inacceffible th' Arabian drouth:
Here Ninevee, of length within her wall
Sev'ral days journey, built by Ninus old,
Of that first golden Monarchy the feat,
And feat of Salmanaffar, whofe fuccefs
Ifrael in long captivity ftill mourns;
There Babylon the wonder of all tongues,
As ancient, but rebuilt by him who twice
Judah and all thy Father David's houfe
Led captive, and Jerufalem laid waste,
Till Cyrus fet them free; Perfepolis
His City there thou seest, and Baðra there;
Erbatana her ftructure vaft there fhews,
And Hecatompylos her hundred gates,
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